The Russian foreign policy shift
New, constructive, pragmatic and interest-based relations with the West is the core in a new strategy paper from the Russian Foreign Ministry, already branded “Russia’s new foreign policy doctrine”.
The document, which already has been approved by President Medvedev, has the modernization of Russia as its prime and overarching objective, Newsweek Russia reports. The weekly, which quotes one of the few foreign ministry officials involved in the process of elaborating the document, describes a foreign policy in substantial change. The foreign ministry source has spoken to the journal on the condition of anonymity.
Although hardly any diplomats have yet seen the document, the new foreign policy course is already unfolding. The quickly changing relations with the USA and Poland, as well as the recent Russian-Norwegian deal on the delimitation of the Barents Sea must all be seen as a Russian reorientation in international relations, Newsweek reports.
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Part of this new course is also the fact that the upcoming Russia-EU Summit in Rostov-On-Don will adopt a roadmap on visa-free travel, and that a new Russia-EU Partnership Agreement is soon ready for formal approval, the weekly writes. Thanks to the improved relations with the USA, Russia also hopes for membership in the WTO in the course of the year.
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The Russian economy needs modernization, and also the foreign policies must seek to solve this task. –The crisis has clearly shown that Russia can not develop alone, the country needs someone to lean on, the Foreign Ministry source says. Only by opening the country for foreign investors can Russia get the financial resources needed for its modernization, he says.
The desired partners in this process are clear – it is the European Union and the USA which must be the main parts of cooperation, the document reportedly reads.
The foreign ministry source also describes a situation with unclear responsibilities in the Russian foreign policy, with the Prime Minister’s assistant Yury Ushakov having significant foreign policy powers. The document calls for more power to the Foreign Ministry, a body which is under the firm control of the President.
